Dewalt has launched 3 new Atomic Series tape measures, in 16-foot, 25-foot, and 30-foot sizes.
Dewalt says that their new tape measures deliver on durability and reach, with a compact design that gives you more control when measuring.
These new tape measures are also said to have a 20% more compact than Dewalt’s ToughSeries tape measures.
In addition to being compact, the new Dewalt Atomic tape measures feature the brand’s first integrated finger brake.
The blades feature fractional blade graphics.
Dewalt Atomic Tape Measure Sizes & Pricing
- 16′ with 1-1/8″ blade (DWHT38116S) – $12.97
- 25′ with 1-1/8″ blade (DWHT38125S) – $14.97
- 30′ with 1-1/8″ blade (DWHT38130S) – $19.97
Pricing is accurate as of the time of this posting.
All three tape measures have 1-1/8″ blade widths, and with claims of 13′ max reach. Maximum “reach” is usually maximum “standout” plus 3 feet, and represents “the maximum extension of an average end user.”
Standout usually refers to the maximum extension for an unsupported tape measure blade, while reach is a more recent term that refers to the maximum extension with the tape supported by a user’s non-dominant hand.
The new Dewalt Atomic Series tape measures are now available at Home Depot stores.
Price: $13-20
Thank you to Richard for the tip!
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Discussion
With 13-foot reach specs, we can extrapolate that these new Dewalt Atomic tape measures would have 10-foot standout specs.
Dewalt’s ToughSeries 25′ tape measure, as well as others in the ToughSeries lineup, has 17-foot max reach specs, which would mean 14-foot max standout specs.
The ToughSeries tapes have 1-1/4″ blades and are said to have exceptionally durable housings and blades. Those premium tapes also feature a removable magnetic hook attachment.
Here, these new Atomic Series tape measures have a 20% smaller grip. The blades are a little narrower.
Price-wise, the ToughSeries 25-foot tape is $29 right now, compared to $15 for the Atomic Series 25-foot tape.
Dewalt’s standard 25-foot tape measure (DWHT36107S) – or at least the model I consider to be their standard 25-foot tape, also has a 1-1/8″ blade width and 13-foot reach specs. At the time of this posting, that standard tape is $16 at Home Depot.
The Atomic Series tapes offer fractional markings, which I generally don’t care for, and also a finger brake which users could take advantage of or completely ignore.
There’s not much else I can say without getting my hands on one for testing, which I’ll try to do soon. Home Depot lists these tapes as an in-store-only product right now, which usually means all available inventory went straight to physical store locations as opposed to online warehouses.
Dewalt’s ToughSeries tape measures deliver a fantastic user experience. These new Atomic tapes are around half the price, but I’m optimistic that Dewalt knows what they’re doing in the tape measure space.
It will be interesting to see how well these new tape measures fit into Dewalt’s lineup, and if they become a new standard for the brand and competitively.
